They had said goodbye in June 2021 to the reality show that had brought them into the world, Keeping Up with the Kardashians (KUWTK). Their absence will have been short-lived: Kris, Kim, Kourtney, Khloé, Kendall and Kylie are making their return this week with a new show simply called: The Kardashians.
Posted at 7:45 p.m.
In the United States, a slow striptease media naturally accompanies this highly anticipated return: magazine covers (vogue and variety), a TV ad at the Oscars, a few interviews with Ellen DeGeneres or on the ABC channel, the parent network of the series’ new broadcaster (Disney+ in Quebec). What does the royal family of American television have in store for us?
The Kardashians are serious
” Never go against the family (“Never go against the family”): This warning issued twice in the trailer (viewed more than 12 million times on YouTube at the time of this writing) has long-time fans fearing the worst of the Kardashians.
” It’s very Sopranovery The Godfather laughs Natalie Franklin, author of the Instagram account @norisblackbook, which parodies North West, the eldest daughter of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West – and which has no less than 1.5 million subscribers, including Kim herself. and Julia Fox, ephemeral flame of Kanye West.
Many reality shows have made their trademark, shall we say, craziness. The Kardashianswhich will be broadcast on Hulu, a streaming platform belonging to Disney, announces a polished aesthetic, which moves away from the codes of the genre.
PHOTO JORDAN STRAUSS, SUPPLIED BY ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kourtney Kardashian and her lover Travis Barker at the Grammy ceremony on April 3
“They are now positioning themselves as business women, serious, but that could leave room for a bit of madness. We’re coming out of a pandemic, there’s a war… wouldn’t you rather do a bad job to Kris? joke Natalie Franklin. For the record, M.me Franklin met Kim and Kourtney and appeared on the final season of KUWTK. “In real life, Kim and her sister are both beautiful, she says, but also very funny and capable of self-mockery. »
A show that makes bling
Gone are the days when the Kardashians were just another Beverly Hills family simply yearning for the comforts of notoriety. Nearly 15 years after its cathode beginnings, the family is at the head of an empire ranging from entertainment to cosmetics, including alcohol, household products and ready-to-wear. It now weighs nearly 5 billion US, according to varietyand the fortune of Kim Kardashian alone is estimated at 1.8 billion US.
“The show is only called The Kardashians, and I believe that is significant. This places them as an iconic family, like the Kennedys or the Windsors. They are now on another planet, they are deities, who are the pinnacle of a certain culture”, analyzes Meredith Jones, of Brunel University, London, and organizer of two “Kimposium” consecrated, as their name l says, to Kim Kardashian.
To attract the Kardashian family, Disney would have extended a sum “in the nine figures”, according to the American press. In short, the spectator’s identification with the Kardashians, one of the engines of KUWTKwill be tougher in 2022 than in 2007.
PHOTO DANNY MOLOSHOK, REUTERS ARCHIVES
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West pictured in 2020, a year before their split
Ye versus Pete
Unsurprisingly, the acrimonious divorce of “KimYe” (Kim and Kanye West) will be at the heart of this season: Kanye West has multiplied outings against his ex and his new companion, Pete Davidson, during the winter. For Kim, it’s a third divorce – and her second in front of the cameras of a reality show.
The divorce will surely be staged to show Kim compassionate towards Kanye [qui a eu un diagnostic de bipolarité en 2016]. But she will not position herself as a victim of violence, if violence there is.
Meredith Jones, from Brunel University, London
As for Pete Davidson, the odds of him becoming a regular on the show aren’t very good. “He’s a good short-term pal, he doesn’t mind being in the public eye, but he’s not a long-term companion,” Natalie Franklin said.
PHOTO EVAN AGOSTINI, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Comedian Pete Davidson has been dating Kim Kardashian since the fall of 2021.
The curious will be able to fall back on the backstage of Saturday Night Livewhere Kim caught up with Pete in the fall, to maybe find out how this unlikely couple came together.
A marriage and questions
Another couple whose stockings should be at the heart of this new version: Khloé and Tristan Thompson, who multiplied the infidelities and confirmed, in January, to have had a child with another woman during their relationship. The eldest of the Kardashians, Kourtney, has a brand new husband, Travis Barker, and family desires. There’s also mystery about how the show will (or won’t) address the Astroworld Festival tragedy of Travis Scott, father of Kylie Jenner’s two children, in which eight people lost their lives last summer.
No return from Caitlyn Jenner
A parental figure from the start of the show, who disappeared after her separation from matriarch Kris, Caitlyn Jenner will not be back. “She begged to come back on the show,” recalls Natalie Franklin, quoting a tweet from the former Olympic medalist at the Montreal Games.
But the Kardashian part of the family seems to have more or less cut ties with Caitlyn, parent of Kendall and Kylie, she believes.
PHOTO MATHIEU WADDELL, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Kylie Jenner came to the Pointe-Calumet Beachclub to celebrate her 18thand birthday, in 2015.
And as those who have seen friends disappear over the seasons know, with the Kardashians, there is no redemption possible. Caitlyn Jenner debuted at the end of March on Fox News as a very conservative commentator who does not position herself as a trans activist at all.
here for good
Not on Instagram or TikTok, and think you’re safe from the influencer culture the Kardashians rule? You wonder why the press in general and The Press in particular even talk about them? Meredith Jones has a message for you: “It’s a misogynistic and moral posture, which shows a certain lack of understanding of popular culture, and which drives me crazy. »
In addition to their undeniable success, the Kardashians have reshaped a certain popular culture in their image. They knew how to take advantage of social networks more quickly than other celebrities. Snubbed for being on the cover of Playboy in 2007 with more or less class, Kim is today an undeniable icon of fashion and luxury, who never stops redefining the criteria of beauty for women.
“Who can sell thousands of perfumes or cosmetics online in seconds, just on their networks? asks Corderro McMurry, journalist at Texas television, and author of a university dissertation devoted to the media weight of Kim Kardashian and published at his own expense, Can I Get a Copy? They’ve become social media and reality TV icons, and they’ve proven that to be an enduring role model. »
The Kardashians will be available in Quebec on Disney+ from April 14.